Norm Uhl

Tremaine Paul, 18, Bayou Body Count No. 43

Violence at a girls' football game​A fight at an informal girls' football game at Worthing High turned into a deadly shooting last evening, Houston police say. Tremaine Paul, 18, was shot at least once and was pronounced dead at the hospital; at least five other people were injured. HPD says ... More >>

Rolling Blackouts: City, HISD Try to Cope

ERCOT can't handle Mr. Freeze​ERCOT, the electricity cooperative that distributes power across Texas, has ordered rolling blackouts this morning because all you damn people insist on staying warm. You probably know this if, like Hair Balls, you awoke to no power this morning. About 330,000 c ... More >>

Yates High Principal Amidst Sex Allegations, Texas Watchdog Says

​When Ronald Mumphery quit as principal of Yates High at the beginning of this school year, no one had any answers as to why. Now the Texas Watchdog is reporting that, based on documents it has, Mumphery resigned "after being accused of multiple acts of sexual misconduct with teachers and oth ... More >>

Farewell, Abstinence-Only Sex Education: Teen Mothers Don't Salute You

Bristol Palin likes abstinence-only now​For the first time in a decade, the federal government is out of the business of funding abstinence-only sex-education programs.Because, as it turns out, teaching kids it's bad to have sex doesn't really stop them from having sex. It just stops them from lea ... More >>

Fall Enrollment is Down at Nine Apollo 20 Schools in HISD

NASA's Apollo 20 never got off the gorund​This year, there are fewer kids enrolled at the nine middle and high schools in the Apollo 20 schools than there were at this time last year -- 810 fewer to be exact -- according to numbers provided to Hair Balls by the Houston ISD.This number doesn't come ... More >>

HISD and Its Pluses and Minuses in Apollo 20 Schools

Apollo 20 or Apollo 13?​For two business days now, Houston ISD staff crunched numbers at Hair Balls' request and finally came up with a more finely tuned status report on the transfers out of and into the Apollo 20 schools so far this year. We published an earlier accounting using the exact figure ... More >>

UPDATED: More Than 4,000 Students Leave the Tougher Apollo 20 Schools

Apollo 20: Not everyone's on board​What's not to like about a longer school year, longer school day, more rigor in the classroom and having your parents more involved in your education?Well, it may be coincidence or it may not be everyone's idea of heaven because more than 4,000 students hav ... More >>

Clifton Middle School -- We Don't Need No Stinkin' Textbooks!

Who needs them?​All this fuss across the state about what's in children's textbooks and as Clifton Middle School in the Houston ISD will tell you -- it doesn't matter at all. A friend of Hair Balls contacted us the other day to say that there were no lockers and no textbooks for students at Clift ... More >>

Texas Education Agency's Rankings Come Out

Stats and numbers that say anything you want​The Texas Education Agency has released its latest set of accountability rankings, and you know what that means -- the results can be spun any way you want, depending on your agenda.The Houston school district professed satisfaction: The state acco ... More >>

TEA Says Key, Kashmere "Academically Unacceptable"

Problems at two schools​The Texas Education Agency has declared Key Middle School and Kashmere High School "Academically Unacceptable" following an investigation into the standardized test cheating and other employee shenanigans at the schools.The TEA is reporting that "actions by some campu ... More >>

HISD's Diana Davila Resigns, And Rumors Fly

Photo courtesy HISD Diana Davila quits abruptly​Houston school board member Diana Davila's sudden resignation, announced late yesterday, has a lot of rumors flying.Whether any of them are true is another question.Davila did not respond to our request for an interview, but HISD spokesman Nor ... More >>

Newsweek Picks Officially Troubled HISD High School As One Of Nation's Best

It's failing, but it's great!​Newsweek has come out with its latest ranking of the nation's best high schools, and the Houston school district is crowing that a record number of HISD highs made it.The usual suspects are there -- DeBakey, Carnegie, Bellaire and Lamar -- but joining the list this ye ... More >>

Tobi Oyedeji's After-Prom Accident: Sleep Deprivation Can Be As Bad As Drinking For Teens

Bellaire High's Tobi Oyedeji​Houston police are still investigating Sunday's early-morning crash caused by a Bellaire teen coming home from the school's official after-prom party, and the school itself is still in shock at the death of a popular, hard-working basketball star.(The family of the 50- ... More >>

Stay The Hell Away From The South Loop If You Know What's Good For You

The West Loop is a disaster area right now. An 18-wheeler has shut it down.From TxDot: EMERGENCY CLOSURE OF IH 610 WEST LOOPAt the request of the City of Bellaire, the Texas Department of Transportation has closed IH 610 West Loop southbound mainlanes and frontage road at Bellaire and is in the proc ... More >>

Bigfooted by Nike: Local small businesses getting squeezed

Local small business getting squeezed

HISD Cancels Outdoor Sports This Afternoon As Horrendous Blizzard Threatens

The Houston school district has canceled "outdoor athletic trips" today, spokesman Norm Uhl says."This has to do with playing games in the weather. Our indoor athletics events such as basketball are NOT cancelled," he says.Temperatures are expected to reach the low teens this afternoon, with as much ... More >>

Local High School Sports Outfitter Getting Bigfooted by Nike

​For 17 years B-Bad Sportswear of Houston has been providing uniforms for teams in the Houston school district, employing 22 workers, hustling to replace torn or missing jerseys before games, proud to have made the shirts and shorts worn by state champions.At one time, boss Gerald Taylor tells Hai ... More >>

HISD's New Hire Leaves Questions Behind In Dallas

​The Houston school district announced a major reorganization yesterday, naming three top officials to oversee elementary, middle school and high school education.Two of the three came from out of the district, including David Simmons, who will supervise high school policies.Simmons had been super ... More >>

Bellaire High Students Take First Steps On Road To Godless Communism, Possibly

Photo courtesy HISD​We guess they didn't get the memo out at Bellaire High that the USSR is an enemy devoted to selling us the rope with which we'll hang oursel -- wait, what? The Berlin War fell? We won the Cold War? It must not have made TMZ.com, because we don't remember reading about it. At a ... More >>

Latest Principal Shifts In HISD Bring Grumbling

​There's been a sudden round of mid-year principal shifts in the Houston school district, and it hasn't brought smiles.Energetic and popular Lee High School principal Steve Amstutz is moving on after failing to raise the troubled school's "unacceptable" Texas Education Agency status. His attempt t ... More >>

Be Proud, Texas: Your Public School System Is So Great It Can Turn Down $700 Million

​Governor Rick Perry, in a valiant bid to be talked about approvingly on Fox News and Rush Limbaugh's show, came to Houston today to announce he will be rejecting $700 million in federal stimulus funds for education.Because, you know, Texas has the whole education thing covered."Texas is on the ri ... More >>

HISD Hoops Classic: A-Hole Coach 170, Lee High School 35

​It was the biggest rout since Hitler's Panzers took on Poland's cavalry, and showed about as much sportsmanship: The powerful, undefeated Yates High basketball creamed not-so-powerful Lee 170-35, pressing and gunning all the way.The halftime score was Yates 100-12, so obviously the Lions couldn't ... More >>

Carnegie Vanguard May Finally (And Happily) Move To A New Home

Photo by Margaret Downing​Houston ISD Superintendent Terry Grier says he loves working with "prickly parents" because they care about their children and want what's best for them.Perhaps that's why he and the HISD administrative team are finally on the brink of landing a new home for Carnagie Vang ... More >>

Opting Out on Obama

Plus: A Houston actress hits the big screen.

Exposing Obama's "Brainwash The Kids" Scheme, With KTRH's Michael Berry

​You gotta admit this about the right-wing, talk-show-listening, Fox-News-loving one-third of America -- no one can whip up a paranoid kerfluffle like they can.The latest insidious event causing them to storm the barricades is Barack Obama's Stalin-like plan to hypnotize mass numbers of gullible s ... More >>

HISD Set To Pick Old White Guy For Next Superintendent?

​The Houston Chronicle is reporting that HISD seems to have settled on Terry Grier, of the San Diego school district, to be its next superintendent. They have the sources over there, so we're inclined to believe it.Earlier this afternoon HISD spokesman Norm Uhl sent out word that the supe pick wou ... More >>

HISD's Customer-Service Survey: Some Highlights

​The Houston school district has released a new "customer satisfaction" survey, where parents and the general Houston population were asked to rate various aspects of the district.Officials are crowing because many of the ratings increased -- "The results of a new survey conducted earlier this yea ... More >>

HISD To Announce It's Done Better Than Ever In State Rankings

​HISD has broken its record for schools ranked as "exemplary" or "recognized," spokesman Norm Uhl says.Last year 57 percent of its 296 schools achieved that ranking; this year 70 percent of its schools have."This is one for the HISD history books and a highlight for me as I end my career at HISD," ... More >>

HISD Takes Back Some Of Its Objection To A Critic's Numbers

Last week when Hair Balls reported that LULAC (the League of United Latin American Citizens) had sent letters to the Texas Education Agency and the Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts saying it should investigate Houston ISD for the amount of money it spends on two private alternative schools, we w ... More >>

Travis Elementary Gets Water

Photo courtesy of WikipediaWe told you last week that Travis Elementary, the school that was so afflicted with swine flu and/or the fears thereof, was starting its summer session of classes. This morning we heard from Houston ISD spokesman Norm Uhl who tells us the "water samples tested last week ... More >>

Let the Record Reflect

This isn't the first time T.H. Rogers Principal Cathryn White has been accused of intimidating disregard for teachers and parents.

Going To Summer School At Lamar? You're Buying A Brand-New Uniform

Lamar High School, like several HISD schools, has a mandatory uniform for its students -- polo shirt with the school's name, khaki pants or shorts. Parents are expected to pay for the clothing, although we're sure there's some program that helps those who can't afford it.Some Lamar students, because ... More >>

Obama Follows Yet Another Bush Policy: He Praises HISD

Photo courtesy White HouseThe Houston school district got a shout-out from President Obama this morning.In a major speech on education, Obama urged a raft of reforms "to finally make No Child Left Behind live up to its name."Among the reforms he urged districts to adopt: Houston's method of keeping ... More >>

HISD Explores its Alternatives With CEP

Next week's Houston Independent School District Board meeting coincides with its self-imposed January 15 deadline for whether it will continue to fork over $17 million a year to the private Community Education Partners for its two alternative schools here. CEP and HISD agreed to a contract extension ... More >>

Fort Worth's School Superintendent Has A Bigger Salary Than Houston's

Houston, you have been dissed by Fort Worth. Fort Worth.That cowtown up north has gone all big-time, paying its school superintendent the highest salary in the state. Abe Saavedra here in Houston has been relegated to the poverty line.Fort Worth ISD superintendent Melody Johnson received a 1.4 perce ... More >>

Couple Sues Over Background Checks At Their Kid's School

You can hardly visit your kid's school these days without handing over your license to have a background check done to make sure you're not some child-raping murderer.It can be a bit of a hassle if you're, say, a conscientious parent who may not be the most legal resident of the US but still wants t ... More >>

HISD Gets A New Media Guru

HISD No Longer Looking To Kill All Busing To Magnets

Saavedra Is Safe For Now, Spokesman Says

More HISD Schools Open Tomorrow

Lower-Income HISD School Gets Prestigious Program

Houston Chronicle, Virginia Tech massacre, HISD, George Michael

The Chron's blog obsession leaves taste behind

One for the Geezers

Former staffers line up to testify against KHOU

Insider

Unhappy Talk TV. At KHOU, the hit tune is "Take This Job and Shove It!"

The Insider